…and I had a shockingly easy, helpful experience. (See?! There’s hope for everything!)

The license plate is always the first thing I look at when I see a car. Still. Since I was little, anytime we drove anywhere, I would look for plates from states I hadn’t seen before, and daydream about where the people inside the cars were going. I would wonder about what these places looked like, and fantasize about going to them someday.

A million thank you’s are not enough to express how happy I am for all the love and support that’s coming in to me and Blue Lollipop Road since being on this trip. I will continue to try and thank anyway and hope that it’s means enough to you all out there and that you’ll continue to follow me on my journey and share yours with me too.

Thank you again to my drink sponsors Blanchard’s Coffee and Fruit 66. You guys have been fueling me everywhere I’ve been. Just one of the spots I have snapped a photo of my constant supply:

*To my hard working, fun, creative intern Sarah who has continually helped with posting my photos on the gallery page above, managing my map and being the brain of 1,000 good ideas; You ROCK. (Check out her ceramics and other artwork. Fabulous.)

*Thanks to Joe; I got showers in Juneau and they even made me s’mores for my birthday. Yeah!*DP, Lindsay and Nelsey- thanks. You have kept me trucking on the ferry and in my car. This means the Blue Lollipop Road continues. That’s the best gift ever to me. Thank you for being such wonderful friends.

*Cool Cleveland! Thanks for posting my post on your site for your awesome city. Isn’t is grand there are so many entertaining spots around America we can all explore?

The other day I beat feet from Upstate, NY to Chicago. It was a perfect sunny day like a lot have been on my trip so far and I zipped along with no problems at all. I stopped off in Cleveland for a couple hours to wander the city. I have to say I was surprised at how great the vibe was. The city was bustling and downtown is filled with stadiums, parks, restaurants and more. Talk about the place for a sports lover! The Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame is right in the city center too. I had to get a quick shot of the peacock guitar (I wonder why:):

I’m not sure what this area was with sidewalk cafe’s and people milling around, but it looked like it’d be the hopping place on a weekend night or after catching a game so I snapped a photo as I drove by. (I’m getting good at that when I can’t find parking!):

I can’t remember who introduced me to Cool Cleveland a while back, or if I have written about this site before- but here it is (maybe again.) I emailed back and forth with the guy that started the site about a year or so ago after someone sent me the link. This is the place to find out what’s happening in this great Ohio city. Apparently the site started by accident like a lot of these community events sites; Someone sends emails to friends about what’s going on around town/puts up blog posts about social events, people start following and boom- all access entertainment site is born. It’s an excellent resource for finding something fun to do if you live or are visiting there.

This time around my visit wasn’t very long, but I can say I think It’d be a blast to go back for a long weekend and take advantage of the variety of places to play in the city of Progress and Prosperity. I’ll be back Cleveland!.